Bible Survey Archives - Page 19 of 25

The David Chronicles 34: How Envy Devours

Joe Harby on May 19, 2013

Introduction

This chapter marks the beginning of civil war in Israel. There had been strains and tensions before, but now it breaks out into open hostilities. As we will see, there are noble men on both sides, and scoundrels on both sides. Life is not always a simple white hats/black hats affair.

The Text

“And it came to pass after this, that David inquired of the Lord, saying, Shall I go up into any of the cities of Judah? And the Lord said unto him, Go up. And David said, Whither shall I go up? And he said, Unto Hebron . . .” (2 Sam. 2:1-32).

Summary of the Text

Saul had fallen because he would not obey the Lord, or in other instances, inquire of Him. With Saul out of the picture, David begins by humbly seeking the Lord’s will for his movements (v. 1). Go to Hebron, God tells him. So David moved there with his family (v. 2). All the men who had been with him in Ziklag, and their families, moved with him to Hebron (v. 3). The men of Judah, David’s tribe, came and anointed him king there (v. 4). Immediately after this, David reaches out to the courageous men of Jabesh-gilead (vv. 4b-7), the men who had buried Saul. In the meantime, Abner brought Ish-bosheth to a place east of the Jordan called Mahanaim, and made him king there (apparently gradually) over the northern tribes (vv. 8-9). We then have a comparison of the reign of Ish-bosheth and David (vv. 10-11).

Now it happened that a small force with Abner ran across a small force with Joab at Gibeon (vv. 12-13). Abner proposes some sort of tournament or ritual combat, and Joab agrees (v. 14). Twelve men from each side came out, and they all slew each other (v. 15-16). The tournament erupted into a battle, and it went badly for Abner (v. 17). There were three sons of Zeruiah (1 Chron. 2:16), who was David’s sister. These men were Joab, Abishai, and Asahel, who was very swift (v. 18). Asahel made a point of pursuing Abner, who twice tried to stop Asahel from chasing him (vv. 19-22). Finally, Abner struck Asahel with the butt of his spear and killed him (v. 23). Joab and Abishai pursued Abner until sundown (v. 24), when Abner was able to regroup with his men at the top of a hill (v. 25). Abner calls upon Joab to halt (v. 26), which Joab decides to do (vv. 27-28). Abner and his men traveled all night back to Mahahaim (v. 29), just as Joab and his men traveled back to Hebron the same way (v. 32). When the tally was made, the fatalities were disproportionate in favor of David’s men (vv. 30-31).

Hebron and Mahanaim

To get a lay of the land, David’s temporary “capital” was about 55 miles southwest of Mahanaim, where Ish- bosheth was located. David’s territory was due west of the Dead Sea, and Ish-bosheth “controlled” both sides of the Jordan north of the Dead Sea. Gibeon was in the border area about halfway between. It is likely that Ish- bosheth was headquartered east of the Jordan because the Philistines made things dicey to the west.

Hebron was an important city in Judah, and had been associated with Abraham (e.g. Gen. 13:18), and was a Levitical city (Josh. 21:13).

The discrepancy between the length of Ish-bosheth’s reign and David’s here is likely accounted for by the time it took for Ish-bosheth to consolidate his reign, and the time it took all Israel to acknowledge David after Ish- bosheth’s death.

Getting to Know Abner

Abner was a noble character, despite being in opposition to David. He sets Ish-bosheth on the throne instead of taking it himself, for example. Abner was Saul’s cousin, and captain of his army (1 Sam. 14:50), and clearly had the power to make himself king. He was not worried about Asahel killing him; he was worried about how he

would face Joab if he was forced to kill him. He and Joab knew each other—having apparently studied at West

Point together—but Abner was clearly not cold-blooded the way Joab was.

Terrible War

“I am for peace: but when I speak, they are for war” (Ps. 120:7). Robert E. Lee once said that it was good that war was so terrible—otherwise we would grow too fond of it. And of all wars, civil wars are the worst. The eagerness with which the twenty-four warriors dispatched one another was a grim foreshadowing of what was to come. Asahel’s single-minded pursuit of Abner (and glory for himself) is another indicator of how these things go. And Abner’s vain desire to keep things constrained show us another side of this kind of conflict.

How Envy Devours

Subsequent events will show that not only were David and Ish-bosheth rival kings, but that Abner and Joab were rival military commanders. What would happen to Joab if someone of Abner’s caliber came over to David’s side? Joab knew the answer to that question, and he acted accordingly. He was shrewd, but still a fool.

When John the Baptist gave way to Jesus, he said that Christ would increase, and the he would decrease. Jesus taught us to defer to one another, to take the lowest seat, to become the servant of all. But in countless situations, we still jockey for position, we still throw elbows. We would rather be the biggest frog in the smallest pond than to have much more than we do and be the seventeenth biggest frog in the biggest pond. If there were a button in front of you that would make you, a poor person, and all other poor people in the world, twice as well-off, but it would also make every rich person five times better off, would you push it?

This is not just a matter of income, or status, or military power. James asks us to figure out where conflicts in our midst come from (Jas. 4:1-7). Do they not come from desire that wars within our members?

Because of this, many would rather be a Joab—a wrong man on the right side—than an Abner, a right man on the wrong side. This is because we are trying to write the narrative of the world in big block letters, and we want it to shake out simplistically. There are, of course, two other options, but never become the kind of person who hides personal sin behind a righteous cause.

The David Chronicles 33:The Song of the Bow

Joe Harby on May 12, 2013

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Introduction

Remember that the book of Samuel is all one book, and we stopped in the middle of it (at our conventional break between first and second Samuel) simply for the sake of convenience. The same great narrative continues, as God establishes His kind of rule, and does so in His way.

The Text

“Now it came to pass after the death of Saul, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites, and David had abode two days in Ziklag; It came even to pass on the third day, that, behold, a man came out of the camp from Saul with his clothes rent, and earth upon his head: and so it was, when he came to David, that he fell to the earth, and did obeisance . . .” (2 Sam. 1:1-27).

Summary of the Text

While the battle was going on at Gilboa, David was fighting the Amalekites and, after his victory, he had been back in Ziklag for two days (v. 1). On the third day, a messenger arrived from Saul’s battlefield (v. 2). He reported that he had escaped from the camp of Israel (v. 3). When asked, he said that many were dead, as were Saul and Jonathan (v. 4). How do you know this? (v. 5). The young man then spins a story which the reader knows to be false (vv. 6-10; 1 Sam. 31:4-7). He claims to have killed Saul at Saul’s request, and he brought the crown and bracelet to David. David, and all the men with him, tore their clothes and wept for Saul and Jonathan (and for Israel) until that evening (v. 12). David then inquired further of the messenger (v. 13), and asked how he dared to lift up his hand against God’s anointed (v. 14). He then turned and commanded one of his soldiers to execute him (v. 15). David pronounced him condemned by his own testimony (v. 16).

David then composed a lament to be included in the Book of Jasher (the Book of the Upright), called the Song of the Bow (vv. 17-18). The gazelle of Israel is slain in the high places (v. 19). Don’t tell the Philistines about this (v. 20). Mount Gilboa is told to wither up and go dry (v. 21). Saul and Jonathan are then praised highly (vv. 22-23). The daughters of Israel are then commanded to lament (v. 24). The gazelle from earlier is now identified as Jonathan (v. 25), and we come to the center of David’s lament (v. 26). The mighty have indeed fallen (v. 27).

Some Striking Figures

Saul lost his kingship because he plundered the Amalekites, and here an Amalekite plunders him . . . and loses his life for it. David has just finished wiping out the Amalekites, and then here comes another one. When David asks what happened? he uses the same phrase that Eli spoke to his messenger from the battlefield. This is the next iteration of Hannah’s great vision of the collapse of the corrupt elites, and their replacement by faithful outsiders. Only this time the words are spoken by the one who will replace, not the one to be replaced.

Hebrew poetry is vivid, concrete, and brevity is one of its great virtues. The word rendered beauty (v. 19) also means gazelle, and David makes it very plain he was talking about Jonathan (v. 25). Also, the lost shield of Saul, unburnished with oil, represents a play on words (v. 21). Shields were oiled to make them gleam, and to help weapons glance off them. But this lost shield has no oil—it is unanointed, or “messiah-less.” This is a powerful image showing that the Lord’s anointed is no longer alive. But if we remember our narrative, David is also the Lord’s anointed.

This lament repeatedly uses the apostrophe—David speaks to Israel at large, and then to Gilboa, then to (about) Saul and Jonathan, then to the daughters of Israel, and then last to Jonathan directly. It is a fitting form of address for an elegy.

Those who take v. 26 as representing something homoerotic simply demonstrate that they have not read the rest of David’s life, not to mention how little they understand a warrior culture like this one.

The Early Chapters

Not surprisingly, we have a chiastic structure here. A. David executes the purported murderer of Saul (1:1-16); B. David laments Saul and Jonathan (1:17-27); C. struggle between the house of David and house of Saul (2:1-3:1); D. David’s house (3:2-5); C’ struggle between Abner and Joab (3:6-30); B’ David laments Abner (3:31-39); A’ David executes the murderers of Ish-bosheth (4:1-12).

Teach the Bow

This injunction (v. 18) should be understood by us at three different levels. The first is that this is clearly the title of the song, and this is how it is to be recorded in the Book of Jasher. The children of Judah were to be taught this song that eulogized Saul and Jonathan. Second, the title is significant. The central person to be honored here is Jonathan—he is the one associated with the bow (v. 22). Be a Jonathan, imitate Jonathan in this. Take the right lesson away from the song. This is how David is able to include Saul in the eulogy. Anyone that someone like Jonathan was willing to die with (and for) is worthy of praise (v. 23). This is not an instance of “lying at funerals.” Saul was David’s father here because Jonathan was his brother (v. 26).

But last, this is a call to learn the craft of bowmanship itself. There is no gun control fastidiousness here. There is no “being like Jonathan” without actual bows, and the knowledge of how to use them (Ps. 144:1). To praise his use of the bow in song is to praise the bow itself. Remember that this was a lament offered by a small band of men whose great army had just been taken out by the Philistines. Never forget. Learn the bow, and learn to be the kind of man that Jonathan was when he wielded it. And whatever happens, do not drift back to the way it was when Saul and Jonathan first mustered the troops (1 Sam. 13:19-22). When there is no “smith” allowed in Israel, there is a tyrant in Israel.

Just this last week, Vice-President Biden called upon “faith leaders” to keep up the pressure on the issue of gun control, and to reframe the whole debate in moral terms. Okay. Anyone who cannot tell the difference between a criminal and an inanimate weapon is also someone who cannot tell the difference between an American and an Amalekite. Do not be children in your understanding, but grow up into maturity.

The David Chronicles 32: A Study in Failure

Joe Harby on January 22, 2012

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Introduction

As 1 Samuel comes to a close, the life of Saul comes to a miserable end. As we will see, the manner of his death was a fitting picture of the way he had lived his life throughout the course of his reign. His reign was a long pattern of self-destruction, and in the end, Saul took his own life—the final act of self-destruction. He died the way he had lived, destroying himself.

The Text

“Now the Philistines fought against Israel: and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain in mount Gilboa. . .” (1 Sam. 31:1-13).

Summary of the Text

The chapter begins with the Philistines attacking, and they routed the men of Israel. As they fled from the Philistines, the carnage took place on the mountain Gilboa (v. 1). The Philistines were in hard pursuit of Saul and his three sons, and they successfully killed Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua (v. 2). In the next verse, the battle was going hard against Saul, and he was badly wounded by the Philistine archers (v. 3). The language here indicates an ongoing battle, which means it was not an utter rout. His wounds apparently made it impossible for him to continue the fight. Saul then told his armor-bearer to kill him, to keep the Philistines from abusing him. The armor-bearer refused, and so Saul fell on a sword, taking his own life (v. 4). When the armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he followed him, doing the same thing (v. 5). And so Saul, his three sons, his armor-bearer, and a number of other men with him, all died on the same day (v. 6). The men on the other side of the Jordan (not very many miles away), when they saw that the battle had gone badly for them, evacuated their cities, which the Philistines then occupied (v. 7). The Philistines came around the next day to strip the dead, and it was then that they identified Saul and his three sons (v. 8). They decapitated Saul, stripped his armor, and sent the armor to their homeland in triumph (v. 9). They displayed his armor in the temple of Ashtaroth—similar to how the Israelites kept Goliath’s sword at the house of the Lord. Saul’s body was then hung on the wall of Beth-shan (v. 10). When the men of Jabesh-gilead heard what had happened, their valiant men went there and recovered the bodies of Saul and his sons, brought them back and burned them (vv. 11-12). After that, they took the remaining bones, buried them under a tamarisk tree, and fasted for seven days (v. 13).

We should say a quick word here about the story of the Amalekite at the beginning of 2 Samuel who tried to ingratiate himself with David by falsely claiming to have killed Saul. The story was false (conflicting with this narrative), and David convicted him on his own terms. We should rather trust the author of 1 Samuel than a self- aggrandizing (and not very smart) Amalekite.

Burial and Cremation

The customary biblical approach to the dead is that of burial. The customary pagan approach is that of burning the body in cremation. The difference has to do with making a good testimony about the hope of resurrection, and not because it is somehow harder for God to raise someone who has been burned than one who has been buried. The resurrection is not threatened by any degree of decomposition, however it happens.

For example, Joseph gave instructions about his bones, and he did this because he wanted to make a declaration of his faith (Heb. 11:22). In this passage, the heroic men of Jabesh-gilead burned the bodies of Saul and his sons because wanted to prevent any further dishonor to the bodies. This was the whole point of their mission. Jonathan is not going to be short-changed on the day of resurrection. Later in the story, David has the bones of Saul and Jonathan (and presumably the others) moved from this place to the family tomb (2 Sam. 21:12-14). Among the Israelites, there is one other mention of burning bodies (apart from unique penal or sacrificial situations), and it is found in Amos 6:10, where the concern is apparently to stop the spread of contagious disease. Under ordinary circumstances, though, the biblical pattern for dealing with the bodies of the faithful is through burial—in sure and certain hope of the resurrection.

A Study in Failure

The trajectory of Saul’s life had certainly been one of spiraling failure. He was characterized by his stiff-necked and close-fisted jealousies, and it was by this that he destroyed himself. By the end of his life, it could not be said that the Philistines had killed him—he had done it himself. It could not be said that David had removed him from the throne—he had done it himself. It could not be said that anyone other than Saul was responsible for the disaster of his final days. Saul did all of this by his own hand or, more specifically, by his own devouring envy. His end was decisive—he was struck with arrows, pierced in his belly, had his head cut off, and then he was burned.

He was buried under a tamarisk tree. The last time we saw him there, he was holding a tyrant’s spear in his hand, and lying about David (1 Sam. 22:6).

And yet, despite the fact that Saul fell to his death in this great catastrophe, we see even in this tragic conclusion, the height from which he fell. The men of Jabesh-gilead who retrieved his body were the first Israelites whom Saul had delivered from their enemies (1 Sam. 11:5-11). They were still grateful for what Saul had done in his better days. This is true also of David, who delivers one of the noblest eulogies ever (2 Sam. 1:17ff).

40 Years for Nothing

This book begins with a leader of Israel dying, along with his sons, as the result of a disastrous battle. The book ends the same way. The book begins with the Philistines in the ascendancy, and the book ends in the same way. The book begins with a great Philistine victory in battle, and it ends the same way. And yet, Saul’s appointed mission had been to deliver Israel from the Philistines (1 Sam. 9:16).

Saul did not do what he was commissioned to do. We are devoted to good works that God has commissioned us to do (Eph. 2:8-10), but our lives will go exactly as Saul’s did—unless we trust in the greater David, the Lord Jesus. He is the only one who perfectly fulfilled the mission that was entrusted to Him. Therefore God has highly exalted Him—as He did with David in a type—and this is why we can walk in the good works that God prepared beforehand for us to do.

The David Chronicles 31: The Open Hand Rules

Joe Harby on January 15, 2012

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Introduction

This chapter recounts a victory that David has over the Amalekites, a battle that occurs at the same time that Saul is being overcome by the Philistines. David comes into a great victory on the third day, and his persistent adversary Saul dies at the same time. Although this passage tells of David’s victory, a large portion of the text deals with David as the gift-giver, David as a generous-hearted king.

The Text

“And it came to pass, when David and his men were come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the south, and Ziklag, and smitten Ziklag, and burned it with fire; And had taken the women captives, that were therein: they slew not any, either great or small, but carried them away, and went on their way . . .” (1 Sam. 30:1-31).

Summary of the Text

David and his men took three days to get home, and when they got there they found it had been burnt by the Amalekites (v. 1). They had not killed anybody, but took all the women and children captive (v. 2). David and his men came back to devastation (v. 3). They all wept until they had no more ability to weep (v. 4). David’s two wives had been taken as well (v. 5). David was in great trouble; his men were talking about stoning him. But David encouraged himself in the Lord (v. 6). He summoned the ephod that Abiathar had (v. 7). The prophetic word told him to pursue the Amalekites and that they would recover everything (v. 8). And so they took to the chase (v. 9). When they got to the brook Besor, 200 men had to be left there (v. 10). Remember they had all been on the march for three days already.

As they continued their pursuit, they found an Egyptian in the field, and they fed him (v. 11). When they did this, his spirit revived, for he had not eaten for 3 days and 3 nights (v. 12). David found out who he was, and why he was abandoned there (v. 13). He outlined the course the raiding Amalekites had taken (v. 14). David asks if he can lead them to the Amalekites, which he agrees to do upon the condition of being spared (v. 15). When he led them there, they were spread all over the place, celebrating (v. 16). David attacked them immediately, and the fighting lasted into the next day (v. 17). Only 400 of them escaped (the total number that David had with him to begin with). David recovered everything and everyone (vv. 18-19). David was given all the spoil (v. 20).

On the return, they came to the men who couldn’t cross the Besor, and they came out to greet David (v. 21). The men of Belial that David had with him wanted to give them their own wives and children only, and send them off (v. 22). David answers in terms of the Lord’s generosity to them (v. 23). David rules in terms of the law (Num. 31:25-31), but he also legislates in the spirit of it (vv. 24-25). When David returned home, he distributed from the spoil to the elders of Judah, in all the places where David and his men were accustomed to go (v. 26-31).

The Third Day

Paul tells us that Jesus rose on the third day in accordance with the Scripture (1 Cor. 15:4). But how was this in accordance with Scripture? It was not so much a specific prophecy as it was something in agreement with the motifs of Scripture, in harmony with some repeated themes. Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days (Matt. 12:40). On the third day the Lord will raise us up (Hos. 6:2). The first sign of life in the creation week was on the third day (Gen. 1:11-12). Isaac “died” and came back to life on the third day of their journey to Moriah (Gen. 22:4). The Lord made a covenant with the people of Israel at Sinai on the third day (Ex. 19:11,15-16). These days are not just counters; they signify.

On the third day, Saul dies. On the third day, David weeps, seeks encouragement from God, and is raised up. And what a resurrection! On the third day, David finds an Egyptian slave who had been without food and water for three days. On the third day, the Amalekites are scattered. On the third day, David takes plunder from the adversary. On the third day, David gives gifts to men. On the third day back in Ziklag, David receives news of the death of Saul.

David Honored

David had sought encouragement from God, and God had granted it. When confronted with an obstacle, unlike Saul, David did not conclude that God had abandoned him. An obstacle was simply and opportunity to trust. He seeks God’s direction, and when he gets it, he follows it. When he follows it, what does God do for him? The one who honors God, God will honor. David smote them (v. 17), David recovered all (v. 18), David rescued (v. 18), David recovered all (v. 19), David took (v. 20), and so it was all David’s spoil (v. 20).

All of Scripture ties together. Moses was also in the wilderness for a time, and had to deal with the people wanting to stone him (Ex. 17:4). And Moses had to deal with this right before a victory over the Amalekites (Ex. 17:8). God loves to put on the same play over and over again, casting different actors in the same role. And they picked up stones to throw at Jesus (Jn. 8:59).

The Kingly Heart

A despot knows how to work with bribes and influence peddlers (1 Sam. 22:7). This is not the same thing as imitating the generosity of God. The cosmos works according to the laws of reciprocity without being a vending machine. You can trick a vending machine.

When 200 of his men grow faint, David is an understanding leader (vv. 9-10). When they come upon an Egyptian slave, they feed him—before knowing if he can be a help to them or not (v. 12). When they return to the men who had been left with the supplies, David makes a law for Israel—the supply corps shares in the spoil (v. 23). Compare this to the sons of Belial who thought they were being generous (v. 22). And David then gives gifts throughout the region (vv. 26-31).

The key principle is found in v.23, and in the heart of David. Freely we have received; freely let us give (Matt. 10:8).

The David Chronicles 30: The God of Brinksmanship

Joe Harby on January 8, 2012

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Introduction

The set-up for the battle of Mt. Gilboa had provoked Saul to seek out the witch of Endor. With that episode done, we come now to a fork in the road. Chapter 30 describes David’s victorious battle against the Amalekites, and chapter 31 describes Saul’s disastrous defeat at the hands of the Philistines. The book of 1 Samuel ends with that marked contrast.

The Text

“Now the Philistines gathered together all their armies to Aphek: and the Israelites pitched by a fountain which is in Jezreel . . ..” (1 Sam. 29:1-11).

Summary of the Text

The Philistines gathered together for war at Aphek (v. 1), the same place where they had captured the ark of the covenant earlier in this book, many years before. The lords of the Philistines were the kings of each of their five major cities. Achish was the last of them to arrive at the muster, and David came with him (v. 2). The Philistine leaders were dubious about the presence of Hebrew soldiers as they prepared for a great battle with the Hebrew nation (v. 3). Achish, with perhaps a lack of appropriate diplomacy, said, “Oh, that’s actually David” (v. 3). The Philistine leaders, with more insight than Achish had, were angry with Achish and demanded that David be sent back to wherever Achish was keeping him (v. 4). They knew that David could force a reconciliation with Saul by turning on them in the midst of the battle (v. 4), and they even knew the song that had turned Saul against David in the first place (v. 5). Achish summons David, and swears to him in the name of YHWH (v. 6). This indicates he was perhaps a convert, and assures David that he had found no fault with him at all . . . but the Philistine lords were of a different mind (v. 6). So Achish asks David to go quietly, lest trouble flare up with the Philistine lords on the spot (v. 7). David’s reply is filled with possible ironies. Why can he not go out and fight against the enemies of “my lord the king” (v. 8)? This is how David had spoken about Saul on various occasions (1 Sam. 24:8, 10; 1 Sam. 26:17-18). Achish says that David had been an “angel of God” in his sight, but the other guys don’t think so. They were afraid he would turn and become an adversary to them. Their word for adversary (v. 4) is satan. He asks David to get up and depart at the break of the new day (v. 10), which, as it turns out, was the break of Israel’s new day. So David returned home to Ziklag (v.11), and the Philistines advanced toward the death of Saul (v. 11).

Irony and Loyalty

David had been true to Saul, and yet Saul was treacherous toward him. David had been (understandably) false with Achish, and yet Achish was true toward him. Saul attacked David multiple times; Achish defended David multiple times. Achish had made David his bodyguard for life (1 Sam. 28:2), while Saul had chased David out of his service. The Gentile king swore by YHWH and declared an innocent man innocent. The Israelite king swore by YHWH and declared an innocent man guilty. David is in a truly tight spot.

Setting the State for the Final Contrast

Given how tight the chronology is here, it is difficult to escape the conclusion that David was fighting the Amalekites in chapter 30 at the same time Saul was fighting the Philistines in 31. David fights and is victorious, while Saul fights and is utterly defeated. David fights with the Amalekites—and it was Saul’s disastrous disobedience with his Amalekite victory that set his disintegration in motion. The prospect for Saul’s battle looked very bad, and it was bad. The prospect for David’s battle looked very bad, and it was good.

Cliffhanger Sanctification

You have heard before that God loves cliffhangers. He loves them because He loves what happens to us when we learn to trust Him in the tight spot. Trust learned there is a lesson long remembered. On the mount of the Lord it will be provided (Gen. 22:14). The Red Sea was not divided until the last possible moment, when the Israelite multitude had water lapping at their toes, and an Egyptian army at their back (Ex. 14:10). Trust God one day at a time (Matt. 6:34), and this of course includes those days when there is no apparent means of deliverance. And then here is this instance. David was penned in, and it looked as though he was going to have to choose between treachery toward a king who had been treacherous toward him and treachery toward a king who had been very kind to him.

We can be sure of two things here. One is that if it had come to the point, David would have behaved as the Philistine lords predicted he would. The second is that David was trusting God that it would not come to that point, and God honored his trust. God did this by using the anger of the Philistine lords, and He uses all things, to His glory. As He tells His great story, the holy God is not contaminated by unholy instruments, any more Tolkien was contaminated by Gollum.

Book Learning

We all want to learn godly steadfastness, which is good, but our problem is that we want to learn all of it from books. We can and should learn “the plan” from books. After all, God wrote a book for us. The problem does not lie in the possession of a book, or in the reading of it, or in the study of it. All such things are good. The problem occurs when we come to think that studying the playbook that the coach gave you is the same thing as showing up for the game. Some Christians show up for the game without knowing the playbook at all, and sure, they have their problems. Other Christians (let us call them “Reformed”), write massive tomes showing the greatness and wisdom of the playbook, and they provide us with detailed commentaries on the playbook. They find which plays are arranged as a chiasm. Since a football team has eleven players, everything is some kind of chiasm.

Why is this so easy to do? Scripture says that a man deceives himself in three ways, and all of them seem appropriate here. He deceives himself when he hears the word without doing it (Jas. 1:22), he deceives himself while claiming religion with an unbridled tongue (Jas. 1:26), and he deceives himself when he thinks he is something when he is nothing (Gal. 6:3). Why do we not take the field in order to run the plays? Well, there appears to be another team out there.